


A Long Way From The Playground

by Narryornarry



Category: One Direction
Genre: Harry is Niall's best friend, Niam - Freeform, Niam is real though, Zouiam are squad, niam is definitely real, niam is real, the other boys make an appearance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-17
Updated: 2015-03-17
Packaged: 2018-03-18 09:30:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3564698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narryornarry/pseuds/Narryornarry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All along, Niall knew they'd be fine</p><p>Or the one where Niall and Liam meet at bootcamp and the rest is history.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Long Way From The Playground

**Author's Note:**

> For niamlourry on tumblr! I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it! 
> 
>    
> Thanks angelfaceharry for being my beta!! 
> 
>  
> 
> Based on the song 18 by One Direction :)

_I got a heart and I got a soul_  
_Believe me I will use them both_

 

"I'm Niall." an unfamiliar voice startled Liam, making him jump. He turned around to see a blonde lad, no more then 17 years old, standing a few feet away from him.

"Hi... I'm Liam. You must be my roommate?" Liam asked.

"Yeah I suppose so, it's nice to meet you, Liam." Niall said, sticking his hand out to shake Liam's.

"You too, Niall." Liam said, shaking Niall's hand and going back to unpacking his suitcase.

There was an awkward silence for a few minutes.

"Since we're roommates we should get to know each other." Niall said, breaking the silence.

"Well what do you wanna know?" Liam asked him, turning around to face Niall, who was sitting on the edge of his bed. Niall's question came as a bit of a shock as not many people were ever interested in getting to know him.

Niall shrugged. "How old are you?" he asked.

"16, gonna be 17 next month. What about you?" Liam replied.

"I'm going to be 17 on September 13th. Where are you from?" Niall asked.

"Wolverhampton, you?" Liam chuckled at Niall's change in question.

Mullingar, Ireland. What else do you like to do besides singing?" Niall fired back.

"What is this? a game of 20 questions?" Liam smirked.

"It's just a quickfire way for us to get to know each other." Niall smiled at him.

"Well in that case, I like to run and play a little football in my free time, what about you?" Liam said, smiling back at him.

"I like to play my guitar and go down to the pub with friends. " Niall asked.

"I always wanted to learn how to play the guitar." Liam said, his eyes widening.

"I can teach you if you want?" Niall offered.

"That would be great, thanks!" Liam said.

Niall smiled at Liam, thinking that this was the start to a beautiful friendship.

 

 _We made a start_  
Be it a false one, I know  
Baby, I don’t want to feel alone

 

Liam and Niall got through to judges houses, but there was a catch. They'd have to compete as a group with three other boys for the rest of the competition.

"What's wrong, Liam?" Niall asked his friend the night they were put into the group. This was their last night sharing a room just the two of them before they had a short break to practice for the judge’s houses stage of the competition. Niall was chatting up all his friends from Mullingar on his cell phone when he saw Liam sitting on the edge of his bed looking at the ground.

"I don't know if this group thing is such a great idea." Liam told him, sighing and looking him straight in the eye.

Niall's heart sank, he was a little nervous he must admit, but he loved the idea of being in the band. At least it was better than returning to Mullingar having failed to make it to the next round of the competition. He didn't know the other three boys yet, but he knew they would all become best friends in no time. Niall sat down next to Liam, putting an arm around him.

"Why wouldn't it be a great idea?" Niall asked.

"I'm scared." Liam said.

"Of?" Niall asked.

"Losing. Being eliminated when we're so close to winning. This is my second time on the show, and I'm scared taking this route isn't the best option. If this doesn’t work out then my last chance to be successful is over?" Liam said.

Niall looked down for a second and then back at Liam. He understood Liam's struggle, he knew Liam wanted this more than anybody else could possibly want this. Niall thought for a moment. He thought about what would happen if he didn't take this chance. He'd have to go back home and start university. He'd most likely become a sound engineer, just like he had planned to do before he auditioned for the X-Factor, and that would be the end of his singing career. He thought about Liam, who was in this competition a second time. He thought about the other boys too, they were so relieved to be put through. He thought maybe if they worked really hard, they could win this. Simon definitely wouldn't have put them together if he thought they didn't stand a chance of winning, and if they didn't take this opportunity they would spend their whole lives thinking about what could've been. He too was afraid that this route wouldn't get them anywhere, but this was a chance to make it far in this competition and they’d be fools to drop out now. Niall was willing to take this risk and he refused to let Liam give up too.

"I am too Liam, but this is an amazing opportunity! This is so much better than going home to Wolverhampton and working in a factory with your dad, isn’t it? " Niall replied, patting the worried boy on the back.

“Yeah,” Liam replied with a small smile. "Do you think it'll all be worth it?"

"Liam listen to me, we are going to win this." Niall told him, feeling confident.

"Oh really?" Liam smirked at him.

"I'm going to make this promise to you right now, ok?" Niall started saying.

Liam nodded his head, raising an eyebrow at Niall.

"As your friend, and now your bandmate..." Niall said, smiling at the 'bandmate' part.

"I promise that we will go far with this band. We will become best friends, and If we just stick together and work hard I know we can make it. We can make it together. I promise."

"You really think we can?" Liam asked, still unsure.

"I promise that in five years time you'll remember this day, and you'll see that I was right." Niall said, sticking his hand out for a handshake.

Liam thought it over for a minute. He wanted to trust Niall, but he also didn't want to fail.

"Ok Niall, I hope you're right." Liam said, shaking Niall's hand.  
Niall smiled and pulled Liam in for a hug.

Their journey just started, and what a long one it would be.

 

_So kiss me where I lay down_

_My hands press to your cheeks_

_A long way from the playground_

 

One Direction was born. They made it past judge’s house and onto the live shows. and As finals week was approaching things got more tense for the boys.

"Louis cut it out! We need to practice." Liam shouted.  
Louis laughed, not realizing he was making Liam very frustrated.

"Chill out Liam, there's nothing wrong with having fun." Louis said, lightly punching Liam’s upper arm.

Liam flinched and backed away, he hated when Louis went near him, let alone touched him. He didn't trust Louis, he thought all Louis wanted to do was joke around and have fun. Liam didn't know how he would deal with Louis if they won, but he hoped if they got signed Louis would get more serious.

"C'mom Liam! We've been rehearsing all day. We could all do this in our sleep we’ve practiced that much. Let's go do something fun!" Harry suggested.

Liam rolled his eyes.

"We can't have fun, we need to rehearse. Why am I the only one taking this seriously?" Liam asked desperately.

"We're taking this seriously too, and like Harry said we’ve been rehearsing all day. We just want to have fun before the show. Don't be a party pooper." Louis told him.

"Fine, you win Louis!" Liam said, storming upstairs, into the room they all shared. He sat on Louis' bed, which was supposed to be his bed but Louis called dibs on it first, and thought about what Niall said. He remembered how Niall said how it would all be ok, and how they would all be best friends in no time. It's been weeks since they've known each other though, and he'd basically been a joke to Louis and Harry.

"Liam?" he heard a familiar voice say. He turned his head and saw Niall standing at the doorway. He motioned Niall to come sit next to him as he moved a pile of clothes that belonged to Louis to make room for Niall.

"They're right you know, we have been rehearsing all day." Niall said as soon as he sat down.

Liam glared at Niall.

"I don't care, we need to win this and we made so many mistakes today in rehearsals." Liam said.

"And we'll fix them tomorrow, they’re only tiny mistakes. it'll all be ok." Niall reassured Liam, putting his arm around him.

"You always say that, and things never end up turning out ok. Look what happened today." Liam told him.

"Well we made it this far, do you see how many girls show up at the studio for us?" Niall said chuckling at the thought.

"Yeah well we didn't win yet, and Louis and I can't get along if my life depends on it. You and Zayn are fine, and Harry's so far up Louis' ass that I don't even think there's a chance for us to be friends." Liam said.

"You and Louis will learn to love each other." Niall said, nodding his head.

"I doubt it." Liam sighed.

"I promise." Niall smiled.

Liam couldn't imagine him and Louis being friends, but Niall was right about them going far, and he was right about them being close friends, except for him and Louis, so maybe they could work things out.

Niall wrapped his arms around Liam, pulling him into a hug. Liam rested his head on Niall's shoulder, wrapping his arms around him. Niall leaned in and kissed Liam's cheek, just a friendly kiss to make Liam hopefully feel better. Liam looked up at Niall, smiling at him. There was something about that moment right there, that made Niall feel a certain way. He didn't know if it was the fact that the week of the finale was coming up soon, and he just needed extra comfort, or the fact that he and Liam were in each other's arms, where they both felt safe. He just had this feeling in his stomach, and he had to act upon it. He leaned into Liam's face, and pressed his lips onto Liam's. They kept their lips together for a few seconds, before breaking apart. Niall closed his eyes for a moment, taking in what happened. When he opened them, he saw Liam smiling up at him, blushing slightly. Ever since then, the feeling Niall had whenever he was with Liam never went away.

 

 _I have loved you since we were 18_  
Long before we both thought the same thing  
To love and to be loved

 

They didn't win. They were eliminated in semi finals week. They ended up getting a contract with Simon anyway, and started on their first album right after.

"I want to say a toast." Liam said, standing up. They were at Harry's house, celebrating finishing their first album.

"We're all ears." Niall said, looking up at Liam and smiling.

"I just want to say that this year has been one of the best years of my life. I'm so grateful for everything that has happened, and I'm so grateful for each and everyone of you guys. You are all my best friends, and you are all my brothers. Here's to One Direction, and to many more albums." Liam said, raising his glass. The other lads raised their glasses too and chanted "One Direction" simultaneously.

”How about a group hug!" Niall shouted, standing up and putting his arm around Liam. Liam put his glass down and motioned for the other boys to stand up. Louis stood up first, cuddling into Liam's side. A few months back, Liam would probably flinch and push him away, but they finally worked things out and now instead of pushing Louis away, he pulled him in close.

"You were right, you were always right." Liam whispered in Niall’s ear. Niall looked up at Liam, he was so happy he could kiss him, but he couldn't. Especially because the other lads were right there, and more importantly, because Liam had a girlfriend and it wouldn't turn out good if he was caught kissing him. The last and only time he kissed Liam was back on the X-Factor. They never talked about the kiss, and Niall assumed Liam forgot about it, just like he forgot about how much he hated Louis, or how much he didn't want to be in the band.

"I love you." Niall said to Liam. He said it pretty loud though, because before he knew it, all the boys were staring at him.

"And I love you, and you." Niall said, nodding his head at Louis and Zayn, successfully covering up his declaration of love to Liam.

"And you." Niall said to Harry, ruffling Harry's hair.

"Well isn't this a little love fest?" Louis said, smiling at all the boys.

A year ago they barely knew each other and now they had just finished their first album. So much had changed in one year, and this was just the beginning.

 

_And all I can do is say that these arms were made for holding you_

_I wanna love like you made me feel_

_When we were 18_

 

Their first album, titled Up All Night, debuted number one in America its first week. The boys were ecstatic. The night they found out they all celebrated together.

"Can you believe it?" Niall asked. They just finished filming the music video for One Thing, and all went home to their own flats, except for Niall, who stopped by Liam's flat. They sat and talked on the couch in Liam's living room.

"No I can't, it's crazy." Liam replied, going to his kitchen and taking two beers out of the refrigerator, opening them both and handing one to Niall.

"A year ago we were all scared out of our minds that we wouldn't get a record deal, and now look at us!" Niall said, his eyes glowing with excitement.

"To many more years, to many more albums, and to many more laughs, One Direction." Liam said, holding his beer up, and taking a sip from it.

"One Direction." Niall said, smiling. He held his beer up like Liam did, and took a sip.

"You know it's funny, when we first became a band, only Louis could drink. Now we can all drink." Liam said, chuckling a little.

"Except for Harry." Niall laughed.

"Yeah except him, but it's just so crazy. So much has changed." Liam said.

"Yeah, I wonder how much change will happen by this time next year." Niall wondered.

"Me too, I hope we're still a band and we're still friends too." Liam said.

Niall nodded his head.

"Our friendship is the most important thing." Niall added, taking another sip of his beer.

Liam nodded in agreement.

"I hope to also have another album, not even it going to number one in America, because let's be honest it'll probably never happen again, but I just want to make more albums." Liam told him.

"Definitely." Niall agreed.

It went silent for half a minute, but that half a minute was enough for Liam to think back to the X-Factor, and how Niall was right about everything. He thought back to the night Niall kissed him, that was the night they fell asleep on Louis' bed, cuddled together in each other's arms. He often thought about that night, especially the kiss. Liam still wondered if Niall remembered that kiss. He would never tell Niall, or anyone for that matter, but Niall's kiss made every doubt he had about the band go away that night. Ever since then he's been wanting to kiss Niall again.

He looked over at Niall who was staring right back at him. He put his hand on Niall's shoulder, and started to slowly lean in towards Niall's lips. He pressed his lips onto Niall's, and to Liam's surprise, Niall didn't back away, or even flinch. Niall was kissing him back. After a few seconds they pulled apart and Niall had looked like he had just seen a ghost.

"Liam... I.... You have a girlfriend." Niall barely blurted out.

"I know… I know…I don't know why I did that… But I want to do it again." Liam said, staring at Niall.

Niall's eyes widened.

"Can I...kiss you again?" Liam asked.

  
Niall nodded.

This time they both leaned into each other, Liam cupping Niall's mouth. They joined their lips together, kissing again and again, until they were both out of breath.

"I love yo-" Niall started to say, before getting interrupted by a phone ringing.

It was Liam's phone, and it was Danielle, Liam's girlfriend, calling. She called to tell Liam she would be over soon.

Liam hung up his phone, putting it back in his pocket.

"I should go" Niall said, standing up to leave.

Liam stood up with him, grabbing his arm.

"No you can stay, Dani won't mind." Liam told him.

"It's fine, I have to Skype my mum anyways." Niall said trying his best not to sound disappointed.

Liam put his hand on Niall's face, leaning in to kiss Niall's mouth again.

"Liam.." Niall said, stepping back.

Liam sighed, taking his hand away from Niall's face.

"I'll see you later." Niall said, picking up his beer and heading towards the door.

"Wait." Liam called out.

"What?" Niall turned around.

"I love you." Liam said.

Niall stared at Liam, not knowing what to say. He wanted to stay, to walk over to Liam and kiss him again. He wanted to so much, but he couldn't. Dani could walk in any moment.

"I love you too." Niall said, turning around and leaving for real this time.

 

 _We took a chance_  
God knows we tried  
Yet all along, I knew we’d be fine

 

The boys were on their first world tour. They were in America doing some promo before heading off to Australia.

"Niam is real. Niam is definitely real." Liam said. He was doing a twitcam for the fans, and what he didn't know was that Niall was watching.

Niall raised his eyebrows when he heard what Liam said.

"It's not real." he whispered to himself.

He excited out of the twitcam and turned his laptop off. Ever since they kissed a couple of months ago, Niall had been thinking of Liam in a whole different way. He's always had tiny crush on Liam, but it's turned into something bigger, and he didn't know how to deal with it. He needed to talk to somebody about this, somebody who could give him some advice on what to do.

"I'm in love with Liam." Niall said, taking Harry by surprise as soon as he opened the door.

"What?" Harry asked, letting Niall into his hotel room.

"I'm in love with Liam." Niall repeated, walking in and sitting on Harry's bed.

Harry closed the door and joined Niall.

"You're in love with Liam?" Harry asked, sitting down next to him.

"Yeah, and I have no clue what to do about it." Niall sighed.

"How long have you been in love with him?" Harry asked.

"Does it matter? He has a girlfriend." Niall said.

"So he doesn't know?" Harry asked.

Niall shrugged, not knowing what else to say or do.

"You should tell him." Harry told him.

"Yeah right, that'll only make things worse." Niall said.

"Maybe it's just a crush, and it'll go away." Harry tried reassuring him.

"I don't think it's a crush, Harry. I think I really really love him." Niall told him.

Harry put his arm around Niall and pulled him into a side hug.

"It'll be ok." Harry said to him.

"The worst part is, I think he loved me back." Niall said.

"Really? What made you think that." Harry asked.

"He kissed me." Niall told him.

"He kissed you?" Harry said, his eyes widening.

"Yeah, back in November. The only reason why he stopped was because of Dani." Niall said, sighing.

"Then you should tell him you love him back." Harry told him.

Niall shook his head.

"I can't, he's so obviously in love with Dani. I could just be imagining him loving me."

"But he kissed you." Harry said.

"That doesn't mean anything, Harry." Niall told him.

"Of course it does, Niall. You don't just kiss people you don't like." Harry told him.

Niall leaned into Harry and kissed him on the lips, just to prove his point.

"See, a kiss means nothing." Niall said, pulling away.

Harry furrowed his eyebrows, surprised at the sudden kiss Niall gave him. 

"So Liam kissed you just because?" He asked, smirking.

"Guess so." Niall shrugged.

"Niall.." Harry said, narrowing his eyebrows at his friend.

Niall sighed, maybe Harry was right. Maybe Liam did kiss him because he liked him. Liam had a girlfriend though, and he couldn't do anything about it.

 

 _So pour me a drink, oh, love,_  
Let’s split the night wide open and we’ll see everything  
We can livin' love in slow motion, motion, motion

 

Liam and Dani split in the middle of September, leaving Liam heartbroken. Before the boys were set to go back to work, Niall went to see Liam to see how he was doing.

"So what happened?" Niall asked, sitting down on the couch at Liam's flat.

"I don't really want to talk about it." Liam said,his head bowed down.

"It'll be ok, Liam." Niall reassured him.

Niall put his arm around him and pulled him close.

"I really loved her, Niall." Liam told him.

"I know." Niall said.

"I don't think I'll ever get over her." Liam sighed.

"You will." Niall reassured him.

Liam sighed again, and buried his head in his hands.

Niall wrapped both of his arms around Liam, pulling him in closer for a hug.

The position they were in reminded Niall of when they were back in the X-Factor house, and Liam would constantly get upset over Louis' antics. He remembered one particular night, they were on Louis' bed having a cuddle, and Niall kissed Liam on the lips. Niall thought this was his one chance to kiss Liam again, to make all of Liam's pain go away like he did two years before. This time he didn't have the courage to straight up kiss him though. He didn't wasn't to scare Liam, and he didn't want to pressure him into doing something he didn't want to do.

"You don't need her, Liam. You're too good for her." Niall started saying. He kissed the top of Liam's head, which wasn't so scary for him to do. All the boys have shared those kinds of kisses before, it was something that was normal for them.

"She was everything you wanted, but she's nothing you'll ever need." Niall continued. He was surprised at how deep he sounded.

"What?" Liam asked, looking up at Niall.

"You're hurting now because you think you need her, but you don't. You've got everything you need without her."

Liam looked at Niall for a minute, taking in what he just said.

"You know what Niall, you're right. She's everything I wanted, but nothing I'll ever need. I don't need her. I have my family, my friends, you boys. That's all I really need." Liam said, trying to reassure himself.

Niall smiled at Liam, happy he could cheer him up, even if it was just a little.

"I love you, Niall." Liam said, catching Niall by surprise.

"I love you, and Louis, and Harry, and Zayn, I love the band, I love my family, my friends. I love everything that I have." He continued.

"We love you too, Liam." Niall said, smiling at him.

"You guys mean the world to me, I can't think of my life without One Direction." Liam told him.

"And to think 2 years ago, you didn't even want to try being in a band." Niall reminded him.

"I know, and now you guys are my brothers. I love you guys." Liam said, pulling Niall into a hug.

They hugged for a minute, before Liam let go and stood up from the couch.

"Wait right here." Liam said, walking towards the kitchen.

He came back two minutes later, holding two beers in his hand.

"Here." Liam said, handing Niall one of the beers and sitting back down.

"Here's to everything I wanted, but nothing I'll ever need." Liam said, holding his beer up.

Niall held his beer up, barely touching Liam's before he brought it back down and took a sip.

"Thanks for tonight, Niall" Liam said, smiling at him.

It was something about Liam at that very moment that took all of Niall's willpower to not kiss him. All Niall could do was nod and smile. 

 

 _So kiss me where I lay down_  
My hands pressed to your cheeks  
A long way from the playground

 

The boys were playing the Royal Variety show, before heading off to do more promo for their new album.

"Can you believe that in a few weeks, we will be play Madison Square Garden?" Liam asked Niall. They were both sat in their dressing room, talking before they had to get on stage.

"No, I can't. It's so nerve wrecking." Niall said. Thinking of performing at Madison Square Garden sent shivers down his spine.

"I feel like if we can perform at Madison Square Garden, then we can do anything." Liam said, nodding his head.

"Yeah, same bro." Niall said, looking at Liam. It's been two months since the night Niall and Liam talked at Liam's house. Two months since Niall gave Liam some words of wisdom, which Liam got tattooed on him recently. Two months since Niall had the chance to kiss Liam, and show him how he felt, but he chickened out. He chickened out every time he wanted to kiss Liam in the last two months. Liam was right though, if they could play Madison Square Garden, then they could do anything, and anything included kissing the bandmate they've been in love with for nearly a year.

"Liam." Niall said, putting his arm on Liam's shoulder.

"Yeah?" Liam asked, turning around to face Niall.

"I need to tell you something." Niall told him.

"What is it?" Liam asked.

Niall cupped Liam's mouth and leaned into him slowly. He pressed his lips to Liam's, surprised when Liam didn't pull away. Niall didn't stop kissing him, he didn't want to stop either, and as long as Liam didn't pull away, he didn't either.

Niall finally pulled away for a second. He stared at Liam, who had a slight grin on his face. He was about to lean in again when there was a knock on the door.

"I.. I'll get it" Liam stood up and walked towards the door.

"Just my luck." Niall whispered to himself.

Liam opened the door, and his eyes widened when he saw who was standing there. It was Dani.

"Dani?" Liam whispered, loud enough for Niall to hear.

"Dani?" Niall said, walking towards the door. His eyes widened, just like Liam's did, when he saw Dani standing there.

"Liam, I'm so sorry about what happened." she said, pulling Liam into a hug.

Niall started to panic.

"What're you doing here?" he asked, trying not to sound harsh.

"I'm dancing on the Royal Variety Show." Dani told them.

"It's great to see you." Liam said.

Niall could see Liam's smile clearly, he was still in love with her.

"I was kinda hoping we could work things out, Liam." Dani asked.

"Of course we can." Liam said, leaning down to kiss her.

Niall's jaw dropped at what Liam said. Liam was so happy without her, he didn't get why he wanted to work things out.

Niall fled the room, hoping they wouldn't notice, and started walking down the hall, not knowing where he was going.

"Hey." he heard a voice say as he was walking. He turned around and saw Harry standing there.

"Hey." Niall said.

"You ok?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. Yeah.. I'm just.. Nervous." Niall nodded.

"Liam and Dani are back together, aren't they?" Harry asked, moving closer to Niall.

"How'd you know?" Niall asked.

"I passed her in the hallway, she told me she was going to go talk to Liam." Harry said.

"He's still in love with her." Niall whispered, only loud enough for Harry to hear.

"You wanna talk about it?" Harry asked, opening his arms.

Niall shook his head, letting Harry pull him in for a hug.

 

 _I have loved you since we were 18_  
Long before we both thought the same thing  
To love and be loved

 

Liam and Dani ended up breaking up in the middle of the boys' second tour. Liam got a new girlfriend, Sophia, a little bit after the breakup. Niall's feelings for Liam slowly went away, and it was all thanks to Harry, who he had been inseparable with ever since the Royal Variety Show.

"Do you think there's something going on with Niall and Harry?" Liam asked.

  
He, Zayn and Louis were on their tour bus playing FIFA, and he thought it was the perfect time to ask his bandmates if he was going crazy or not.

"What do you mean?" Louis asked, staring blankly at him.

"I mean, they've been inseparable, I don't think there's been a moment that they haven't been together." Liam told them.

"I don't get what your saying, you don't want them to be close?" Zayn asked.

"It's not that at all, it's just that..." Liam stopped mid sentence.

"It's just that what?" Louis asked, putting his arm around Liam.

"Niall was in love with me. I'm almost sure he was, and I'm scared that me not giving him a chance ruined our friendship. We used to be inseparable, now it's like he's found a new best friend." Liam confessed.

"Niall was in love with you?" Louis and Zayn both said at the same time.

Liam nodded.

"And we're finding out about this now?" Louis said, half offended.

"I don't think he's told anyone. I only think this because at the Royal Variety Show we kissed, and then after I got back together with Dani, things were never the same between us."

"You guys kissed?" Zayn said, his eyes widening at what he just heard.

"Three times." Liam said, nodding his head.

"And you didn't think anything of them?" Louis asked.

"Well, maybe the last time we kissed I thought something was up,but then Dani showed up and I completely forgot about everything else. I was still so in love with her." Liam said.

"Were you in love with Niall?" Zayn asked him.

Liam thought for a second. Ever since he kissed Niall at his flat back in 2011, he hadn't really thought about his feelings towards him. He knew he had a girlfriend, and that having feelings for Niall wouldn't be good, so he pushed those feelings aside. Lately though, they've been coming back to him.

"I was. I haven't been though for a while, but lately, I've been feeling some things, and I don't know what they are." Liam replied, looking up at his friends.

Zayn got up from where he was sitting and moved next to Liam.

"Well maybe you should figure it out." Zayn told him.

"I can't be in love with him. I love Sophia. I can't love both of them." Liam told them.

"You loved both Niall and Dani." Louis reminded him.

"And that made things more complicated. I don't want to mess anything up with Niall or Sophia." Liam said, burying his head in his hands.

"You'll figure it out." Zayn said, patting Liam's back.

"You should talk to him, Liam." Louis suggested.

"You think?" Liam looked up at him and asked.

"Definitely." Louis reassured him.

"Try building that strong bond again, and then see where that takes you." Zayn suggested.

"What if he doesn't love me like that anymore?" Liam asked them.

"I think the only thing you should worry about right now is if Niall loves you as a friend, and then you'll go from there." Louis told him.

Liam nodded his head at both of them. First he would talk to Niall, and try to get that close bond back again, and then he'd go from there.

 

 _And all I could do is say that these arms were made for holding you, oh_  
And I wanna love like you made me feel when we were 18  
When we were 18  
Oh, Lord, when we were 18

 

Liam decided he'd talk to Niall. A couple days later, he found Niall backstage on his phone in their dressing room. He thought it was the perfect time to talk to him.

"Hey Niall, can we talk?" Liam asked.

Niall looked up from his phone and looked at Liam.

"Yeah, of course." Niall said.

Liam sat down next to Niall, taking a deep breath before starting to talk.

"We're ok, right?" Liam asked.

"What do you mean?" Niall asked, confused about what Liam was talking about.

"Like, there's no tension between us, right?" Liam clarified.

"Tension? Of course there isn't!" Niall told him.

Liam sighed in relief.

"Good." He said.

"Liam, you know I love you, right? You're one of my best mates." Niall reassured him.

Liam smiled and nodded his head.

"I just felt like we kinda drifted apart a bit. You and Harry have been inseparable. I miss it when we were inseparable." He told him.

"Yeah well the only two single guys in the band need to stick together, you know?" Niall said, laughing a little.

"Yeah I know, I just wish that sometimes, I could stick with you." Liam said.

"Well you're always welcome to hang out with us." Niall said.

"Really?" Liam asked.

"Of course. You know we both love you, Liam!" Niall reassured him.

Liam smiled and pulled Niall in for a hug. He still was confused about his feelings for Niall, but for now he would just be glad they're still friends.

 

 _Kiss me where I lay down_  
My hands pressed to your cheeks  
A long way from the playground

 

For the rest of the tour, Liam often tagged along with Niall and Harry. His bond with both of them grew stronger. He started to feel like he was the one in the middle when it came to the band. He was always either with Niall and Harry, or Louis and Zayn. He always felt like he belonged in the band, he didn't feel otherwise since the X-Factor, but with the dynamic they were having at the time, his feeling of belonging was at an all time high.

The boys finished finished the year with another successful tour, a movie that premiered in Leicester Square, and another successful album. Their stadium tour started in April of the following year, and this time he would be single. After loads of thinking, Liam called it quits with Sophia. He finally realized who he really loved. He loved Niall, and he always loved Niall.

 

 _I have loved you since we were 18_  
Long before we both thought the same thing  
To love and to be loved

 

On the night before their last show in South America, Liam decided that it was time to tell Niall how he felt. Liam went to knock on Niall's door, hoping he was in his room, and wasn't sleeping.

"Hey." Liam said, as soon as the door opened.

"Hey." Niall replied back.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you." Liam said.

"No not at all, I was just watching some tv, come in." Niall said, letting Liam in, and shutting the door behind them.

"We need to talk." Liam said, putting his hand on Niall's shoulder.

"What about?" Niall asked him.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking over this break, and I think I'm done thinking" Liam confessed.

"What do you mean?" Niall asked, confused.

Liam leaned in closer, moving his hand from Niall's shoulder to cup Niall's face. He looked into Niall's eyes, which had a hint of confusion in them, and slowly connected their lips together. Niall opened his mouth, letting in Liam's tongue. It took a few seconds for Niall to process what was going on, before he backed away.

"Liam..." Niall said .

"I broke up with Sophia... For you..I realized I love you. I'm in love with you." Liam confessed.

"I.. I don't know what to say." Niall replied, shocked at what he was hearing.

"I know you feel the same way." Liam said.

Niall looked at Liam, slowly moving closer and closer to him.

"I do." Niall nodded.

Liam took Niall's hand and led him to sit down on his bed.

"I'm sorry I just realized it." Liam said, cupping Niall's face with both of his hands.

"Don't worry about it." Niall said, smiling at him.

Liam smiled back, gently stroking Niall's cheek. Niall wrapped his arms around Liam, pulling him down with him as he laid down on the bed. Liam collided their lips together, leaving their lips together long enough to savor the magnetic touch of their lips.

"I love you." Liam said, pulling away to take a breath.

Niall pressed his hand onto Liam's cheek, making Liam blush.

"I've loved you since we were 18." Niall replied.

Liam smiled and leaned in to kiss Niall again. This time, it wouldn't be the last time these two shared a kiss.

 

 _And all I could do is say that_ _these arms were made for holding you_

_I wanna love like you made me feel when we were 18_

_I wanna love like you made me feel when we were 18_

_I wanna love like you made me feel when we were 18_

 

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: I tried to be as accurate as I could with events, and I know sophiam got back together after they broke up in spring of 2014 but for the story i made it so they didn't get back together


End file.
